# Michelle Fairley

Michelle Fairley is an actress from Northern Ireland. She is best known for playing Catelyn Stark in the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011–2013). She has since appeared in the USA Network series Suits (2013), the Fox series 24: Live Another Day (2014), the RTÉ miniseries Rebellion (2016), the science fiction series The Feed (2019), and the Sky Atlantic crime drama Gangs of London (2020–present).

## Early life

Fairley was born in Coleraine to parents Brian and Teresa Fairley, the second eldest of six children. Her father was a popular publican, owner of Fairley's Bar and several off-licences, in Northern Ireland during The Troubles, but Fairley remembers both Catholics and Protestants frequenting the pub.

## Career

Fairley appeared in a number of British television shows, including The Bill, Holby City and Casualty. Some of her earlier roles were as Cathy Michaels on ITV1's Inspector Morse in the episode titled "The Way Through The Woods" and as Nancy Phelan in Lovejoy in the episode 9 of Season 3 titled "Smoke Your Nose".
She took over the role of Mrs. Granger from Heather Bleasdale (who had played Mrs. Granger in Chamber of Secrets) in the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows films. From 2011 to 2013, Fairley starred as Catelyn Stark (née Tully) in the first three seasons of the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones, replacing Jennifer Ehle who played the character in the original, unaired, pilot episode.
Fairley joined the cast of the USA Network series Suits for its third season, playing the recurring role of Dr. Ava Hessington, a chemical engineer and oil CEO accused of bribery, and after that, accused for murder. She played Margot Al-Harazi in 24: Live Another Day on Fox. Her film roles included The Invisible Woman (2013) and In the Heart of the Sea (2015). In 2014, Fairley was cast as Margaret Langston in the ABC TV Series Resurrection (2014-2015).
In 2017, it was announced Fairley would appear in a revival of Jim Cartwright's play Road at the Royal Court Theatre In 2018, she played Cassius in Julius Caesar at the Bridge Theatre, alongside David Calder, David Morrissey and Ben Whishaw. In 2019, Fairley led the Virgin Media and Amazon Prime science fiction series The Feed as Meredith Hatfield. As of June 2020, Fairley stars as Marian Wallace in the Sky Atlantic crime drama Gangs of London. She starred as Millie in the 2021 film Nobody Has To Know alongside Bouli Lanners. In 2023, Fairley starred as Princess Augusta in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story on Netflix. She also contributed to The Gone a TVNZ and RTE coproduction.

## Personal life

Fairley has been based in London since 1986, and keeps a low public profile. She said in an interview with The Telegraph in 2015, that she made the decision to separate from her boyfriend of seven years in 2012. Since then, Fairley has had no known partners. Fairley said, in the same interview, that she "missed the gene" for motherhood. She never had the desire to have children like some of her siblings did.
While Fairley has worked on various American projects in the past, she has no love for Hollywood, and the West End theatres remain her home. She said that while television and movies provide a new challenge by making her "use a different muscle," theatre is where she feels her best work is done, where she started her career, and where she hopes to "end up".

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1990 | Hidden Agenda | Teresa Doyle | |
| 1998 | A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries | Miss O'Shaunessy | |
| 1998 | Suffering | Patricia | |
| 2000 | The Second Death | Aisling | Short film |
| 2001 | The Others | Mrs. Marlish | |
| 2002 | Shearing | Yvonne | Short film |
| 2010 | Cup Cake | Annie McNabb | |
| 2010 | The Duel | Marya | |
| 2010 | Chatroom | Rosie | |
| 2010 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 | Mrs. Granger | |
| 2013 | The Invisible Woman | Caroline Graves | |
| 2013 | Philomena | Sally Mitchell | |
| 2013 | Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart | Brigitte Helm | Voice only |
| 2014 | Ironclad: Battle for Blood | Joan De Vesci | |
| 2014 | Montana | DCI Rachel Jones | |
| 2014 | I Am Here | Mother | Short film |
| 2014 | Common | Shelagh | TV movie |
| 2015 | In the Heart of the Sea | Mrs. Nickerson | |
| 2016 | Edith | Sheila | Short film |
| 2019 | The Trap | Michelle | Short film |
| 2019 | Responsible Child | Kerry | TV movie |
| 2021 | Nobody Has to Know | Millie MacPherson | |
| 2022 | An Irish Goodbye | Grainne | Short film |
| 2024 | Small Things Like These | Mrs. Wilson | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Saracen | Maeve | Episode: "Starcross" |
| 1990 | 4 Play | Maureen | Episode: "Valentine Falls" |
| 1990 | Theatre Night | Ruth | Episode: "Pentecost" |
| 1991 | Children of the North | Kate | Episodes: "The Killing of Yesterday's Children", "City of Maloch" |
| 1991 | Casualty | Kathy Emerick | Episode: "Judgement Day" |
| 1992 | Lovejoy | Nancy Phelan | Episode: "Smoke Your Nose" |
| 1992 | Screenplay | Jenny | Episode: "Force of Duty" |
| 1992 | Screen Two | Sharon | Episode: "Flea Bites" |
| 1993 | Screen Two | Fiona Gibbons | Episode: "The Long Roads" |
| 1993 | Casualty | Kate Maguire | Episode: "No Place to Hide" |
| 1993 | Comics | Nula O'Reilly | TV film |
| 1994 | Cardiac Arrest | Karen Teller | Episodes: "You Can't Make an Omelette Without Breaking Legs", "The Edge" |
| 1995 | Life After Life | Roisin Donaghy | Television film |
| 1995 | The Bill | Beth Spence | Episode: "No Choice" |
| 1995 | Inspector Morse | Cathy Michaels | Episode: "The Way Through the Woods" |
| 1996 | A Mug's Game | Kathy Cowan | Television film |
| 1996 | Safe and Sound | Eleanor Delaney | Main role |
| 1996 | The Precious Blood | Jean McBride | Television film |
| 1997 | The Broker's Man | Gabby Rodwell | Main role |
| 1997 | The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling | Mrs. Harriet Fitzpatrick | TV m |
| 1999 | Births, Marriages and Deaths | Pat | Main role |
| 1999 | Vicious Circle | Frances | Television film |
| 2000 | McCready and Daughter | Bernadette | Television film |
| 2001 | In Deep | Eva / Phoebe | 2 episodes |
| 2001 | Rebus | Janice Mee | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | Holby City | Heidi Drury | Episode: "Keep It in the Family" |
| 2003 | The Clinic | Shirley | 1 episode |
| 2005 | Ahead of the Class | Sonia Venning | Television film |
| 2005 | The Golden Hour | Julia Harper | 1 episode |
| 2006 | The Catherine Tate Show | Rosemary | Episode: "Mum, I'm Gay" |
| 2006 | Strictly Confidential | Carol Machin | 1 episode |
| 2007 | Trial & Retribution | Mrs. Jenkins | Episode: "Mirror Image: Part 1" |
| 2009 | A Short Stay in Switzerland | Mrs. Savery | TV film |
| 2009 | Lark Rise to Candleford | Mrs. Elizabeth Patterson | Episode: "2.10" |
| 2009 | Best: His Mother's Son | Ann Best | TV film |
| 2009 | Taggart | Joan Revie | Episode: "So Long Baby" |
| 2009 | Misfits | Louise Young | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | Midsomer Murders | Iris Holman | Episode: "The Noble Art" |
| 2011 | Silent Witness | DI Suzy Harte | Episodes: "First Casualty: Parts 1 & 2" |
| 2011–2013 | Game of Thrones | Catelyn Stark | Main role; 25 episodes (seasons 1–3) |
| 2012 | Coming Up | Jen | Episode: "Colour" |
| 2013 | Suits | Ava Hessington | Recurring role (8 episodes) |
| 2014 | 24: Live Another Day | Margot Al-Harazi | Recurring role (8 episodes) |
| 2014 | Common | Shelagh | TV film |
| 2014 | Resurrection: A Second Chance | Margaret Langston | TV film |
| 2014–2015 | Resurrection | Margaret Langston | Recurring role (13 episodes) |
| 2015 | The Lizzie Borden Chronicles | Aideen Trotwood | Episode: "Capsize" |
| 2015 | Crossing Lines | Sophie Baines | Recurring role (Season 3) |
| 2016 | Rebellion | Dolly Butler | Season 1 |
| 2017 | Fortitude | Freya Lennox | Recurring role (Season 2) |
| 2017 | The White Princess | Margaret Beaufort | Main Role |
| 2017 | Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero | Queen Igneous (voice) | Episode: "Rockullan, Papyron, Scissorian" |
| 2019 | The Feed | Meredith Hatfield | Main role |
| 2020–present | Gangs of London | Marian Wallace | Main role |
| 2023 | Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story | Princess Augusta | Main role |
| 2023 | The Gone | Hannah | Main role |

### Theatre

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1993 | Oleanna | Carol | Royal Court Theatre |
| 1998 | Never Land | Elisabeth | Royal Court Theatre |
| 1999 | The Weir | Valerie | Walter Kerr Theatre |
| 2003 | Scenes from the Big Picture | Helen Woods | National Theatre |
| 2003 | Loyal Women | Brenda | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2004 | Ashes to Ashes | Rebecca | Lyric Theatre |
| 2006 | The Wild Duck | Gina | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2006 | Gates of Gold | Alma | Trafalgar Studios |
| 2007 | Othello | Emilia | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2007 | Macbeth | Lady Macbeth | West Yorkshire Playhouse |
| 2009 | Dancing at Lughnasa | Kate | Old Vic |
| 2010 | Greta Garbo Came to Donegal | Paulie Hennessy | Tricycle Theatre |
| 2011 | Remembrance Day | Sveta | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2015 | Splendour | Genevieve | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2017 | Road | Helen/Marion/Brenda | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2018 | Julius Caesar | Cassius | Bridge Theatre |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2008 | Olivier Awards | Best Performance in a Supporting Role | Othello | Nominated |
| 2011 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Actress - Television | Game of Thrones | Nominated |
| 2011 | Scream Award | Best Ensemble | Game of Thrones | Nominated |
| 2011 | Screen Actors Guild Award | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Game of Thrones | Nominated |
| 2013 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Actress - Television | Game of Thrones | Won |
| 2013 | Saturn Award | Best Supporting Actress on Television | Game of Thrones | Nominated |
| 2013 | Screen Actors Guild Award | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Game of Thrones | Nominated |
| 2016 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting Actress - Television | Rebellion | Nominated |
| 2019 | Clarence Derwent Award | Best Female in a Supporting Role | Julius Caesar | Won |
| 2019 | WhatsOnStage Award | Best Supporting Actress in a Play | Julius Caesar | Nominated |
| 2021 | Chicago International Film Festival | Best Actress | Nobody Has to Know | Won |